Sizemore fan reacts to story of salacious photographs - New Philadelphia, OH - The Times-Reporter

The following is a story that my sister-in-law Tiff took part in from The Times Reporter. Too cool. It's kind of funny because while I was working and speaking to Lee Morrison from the TR, he said that the Grady Sizemore photos were his big story for the day. I mentioned that Tiff was one of the girls who formed the Grady's ladies fan club and Lee immediately asked if I thought she would be interested in commenting on the story. I called Rod, who called Tim, who called Tiff and gave her Lee's contact info, and the rest is history. Too cool!



Sizemore fan reacts to story of salacious photographs - New Philadelphia, OH - The Times-Reporter

Leaders of Grady’s Ladies fan club for Cleveland Indians centerfielder Grady Sizemore are surprised, but supportive, regarding racy photographs of him posted on the Internet.It’s been a hot topic of conversation among club members, said Tiffany Pearson Thomas, who graduated from Dover High in 2001.Sizemore said the photos – one of them showing him nearly nude – were stolen from his girlfriend’s e-mail account and posted online. He contacted Major League Baseball officials to stop the spread of the photos, which began appearing Sunday on various Web sites.“If there’s one thing we’ve learned about Grady Sizemore during the 4 1/2 years of running this fan group, it’s that he is a shy, very private person, so the release of these photos has caught us all off guard,” Thomas said in a statement for the group. “While he certainly has nothing to be ashamed of, we respect Grady’s privacy and fully support whatever legal action he decides to take against the person or persons, who stole the photos from his girlfriend’s e-mail account.”Sizemore, 27, is the Indians’ most popular player. His fan base includes “Grady’s Ladies,” and several other women’s groups devoted to the three-time All-Star.Thomas has seen the photos.“Obviously, word spread quickly,” Thomas said. “Most of the Grady’s Ladies I know have seen them. Obviously, those weren’t meant for everyone to see. Being in the spotlight, should he have known better, yeah, but these things happen.”Thomas and five other women formed the fan club in 2005 after they became acquainted through a Cleveland Indians message board on the Internet.“People think we only were interested because of his good looks, but we’re all huge sports fans as well,” Thomas said. “We thought he would have an amazing future.”They launched a Web site www.gradysladies.com in August 2005. The group now consists of more than 500 members.For about four years, Tiffany has resided at New Port Ritchey, Fla., with her husband, Timothy Thomas, formerly of Dover and a 2000 graduate of Indian Valley High at Gnadenhutten.“Even though we live here, I try to fly up to Ohio at least a couple of times each season,” she said.“We get together in a big block of seats in the bleachers and make signs and cheer for Grady and have fun.“We sell merchandise online and all proceeds go to Cleveland Indians Charities. We pride ourselves on the charitable work we do, it’s very important to us.”Thomas considers herself “one of the fortunate ones” because she’s personally met Sizemore three times, including when the Indians had their spring training facility at Winter Haven, Fla.MLB investigators are trying to determine how many sites ran the photos of Sizemore standing in front of a bathroom mirror in various stages of undress. Sizemore used a cell phone to take the pictures of himself and they were intended only for his girlfriend.With a rare combination of speed and power, Sizemore has developed into one of baseball’s best all-around players. He is one of only two players in club history to hit 30 homers and steal 30 bases in one season.A two-time Gold Glove winner, Sizemore has endeared himself to Cleveland fans with his hustle.The Associated Press contributed to this article
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